Of Wolf and Phoenix
by The Real Deus ex Machina
Summary: Lance, a ten year old prince finds his fathers sword and removes it from it's pedestal. First story of mine, and I wouldn't mind some reviews. Well, I'm back up! New chapters will be uploaded shortly.
1. Prologue

A/N G'day, readers! This is my first submission to and I've been thinking this styory over, and oer, so I just decided to post it! I am co-authoring this with a friend of mine, Lance Delgado, and we ope this to turn out a success. Enough with the raving, on with the story!

Lance: Neither David, or I, own any characters portraied in this story other than Sarah! Enjoy.

**CHAPTER 1:Prologue to a prologue.**

She was running. She didn't know why, but she knew she wasn't safe. She stopped under a large, old oak, to catch her breath. She had been running for weeks now, away from the capital. She had on filthy rags that were once a pale peach colored and frilly dress, now a shade of muddy green from the rough travel. On her feet were some boots she found in an abandoned shack, one that was still smoldering.

**Her name was Sarah. She didn't even remember her own last name, but she knew her name was Sarah. She was around 16 now, five feet and eight inches tall, with a pale complexion, raven hair, and a slightly Latino look to her. **

**Sarah stood up, she knew she couldn't stay in one place for long. She looked up, looking for the North Star. She was heading north in hopes of escaping her pursuers.**

**She found it directly ahead of her and started jogging towards it, to a hill in front of her. She reached the top and gasped at what she saw. There, laid out right in front of her, was a literal ocean of trees, most of them huge. "The great forest. I've found it!" She exclaimed as she looked at it. One in particular stood out, reaching high above the others. **

**It was insanely huge, dwarfing the highest rivaling tree by a good hundred feet. Eyeing it, she started forward, she wasn't going to get captured this close to her destination, not after the hell she went through to get there. As she drew closer, she heard the bark of hounds far behind her. They were close, closer than last night.**

**With this as new motivation, she sprinted to the cover of the nearest tree. When she reached it, she could smell a faint scent of a dank musk, al most like an ancient cellar. _Well, this place certainly seems inviting…_ With the barking getting more and more hushed with every step, a sense of relief swept over her. She did it! She escaped those horrid hunters, and made it to the forest. _Now,_ She thought, _what do I do?_ Looking around, a sense of unease flooded her. What now? Where to? **

**With a cautious step forward, she tried to think. She should probably keep on going, but where to? _This forest is huge! How will I get anywhere?_ Then a thought hit her. _That big tree…_ It somehow made sense to her. It was decided. She was going to that large old tree. _But now,_ thought Sarah, _I'll rest._**

**+------------------------------------------------+**

**The next day, Sarah woke up early. She stared around her, trying to piece together what had happened. She was on a high, broad branch, in an old tree. As she stared around she noted she was in a forest. _A really pretty one, too._ The light played on the ground in scattered groups, jostling along with the merrily swaying leaves. Wildlife was busily hopping, flying, sauntering, or sliding around, not paying any attention to the girl watching them. **

**She climbed down gingerly, landing with a soft plop on the ground. She walked forward, remembering the path to the huge tree from her perch on the branch. She picked fruit along the way, negotiating with her stomach that she would eat, but keep moving. At around noon, Sarah sat down on a convenient log to rest. She was close, she was sure of that. She would get there by nightfall.**

**A few hours later, she stepped out of the line of trees into a breath taking meadow. The grass was a brilliant emerald, the few streams a sparkling blue, and the sun shining down completed the picture. "This is kind of nice," Then she noticed that some of the trees that were standing there had holes in them, almost like doors. This gave the impression of an eerie abandoned village. These tree houses were in good condition, though, and the distinct aroma of cooking apples was fanning across the tree village. She saw the canopy of the huge tree she was headed for a few hundred yards away, so she ignored the "houses", and went towards the tree. She didn't notice the eyes watching her from the windows of several of the huts.**

**She stepped into an even larger meadow to come face to face with the colossal trunk of the tree she was searching for. It was huge. It looked as though it was miles into the sky. Once done with the observations, she approached it. "Whoa…" It had what looked like a face etched into its trunk, with a moustache. **

"**You don't see that everyday. Usually…" she murmured to no one in particular. "I'd suppose not, child." She jumped and turned around. No one was anywhere in sight. **

"**Where are you?!" she yelled farsightedly. "Thy need not fear, I am in front of thee." Sarah turned toward the voice, and looked straight at the tree. "Where are you? Behind the tree?" She could have sworn she heard a chuckle. "I am not behind the tree, I am the tree." She stared at it as if it were a… err, talking tree. "How can you be a tree?" she asked it, him if the voice was any indication. "The same way you are you, Sarah." She calmed slightly. She knew the tree wasn't gong to harm her, but she was still weary of him. "Fine. So, who are you?" "I am called The Great Deku tree by the children of the forest." This got her attention. "Children? In this forest?" "Yes, lass. You passed a village to get to this meadow, correct?" She nodded. "Did thee notice the houses there? Those are the lodgings for them. They are called Kokiri, and they have inhabited this forest since I shaped them." She had a blank look on her face. "You… Made them?" He chuckled yet again. "Yes, I did. Now If thee have no further questions for me," Sarah bit her lip. "Then I would like to know what brings you to the forbidden woods." She almost panicked at the word forbidden, but tried to stay calm. "I ran here to hide from hunters. I have been followed for weeks on end and seeked shelter. I stumbled upon this forest and entered." She summarized quickly. "Ah. I will send a fairy to my most trusted Kokiri. Please wait there." As he said this, a small pink light floated towards his face with help of wings attached to its back. They held a hushed conversation, while Sarah dozed of for a while. She woke as a pair of small hands shook her gently. As she looked up, she realized they were attached to a young girl of around ten with vibrant green hair. The younger girl smiled as Sarah opened her light brown eyes. The green haired girl said, "Hello, my name's Saria. What's yours?" Sarah stared for a bit then shook her head, standing up. "Sarah. It's Sarah. So, are you a, you know, Kokiri?" Saria broadened her smile. "Yes, I am!" She wore a green turtle necked sweater, with a matching pair of shorts, some green boots and a pine green hair clip. The only non-green part of her was her eyes, which were a deep blue, almost glowing green anyway. "Are there more of you? Kokiri, that is." Saria nodded. "Yes, there are. Want to go meet some?" Sarah thought for a moment. She had nowhere to go, she needed shelter, and Saria seemed to be a nice girl. "Sure, I'd love to!" Saria giggled happily, clapping her hands together. "Great. I guess we should go see Link first, since he just got back from his trip. I was on my way to him when I got summoned, anyway." Sarah nodded. This could get interesting. "Sounds good to me. Lets go!" Saria giggled again, and walked towards the clearing with the village, Sarah in tow. When the duo got there, Sarah noticed some other kids running around and playing with each other. They were headed to a house that was elevated, with a ladder and balcony. Saria started climbing. Sarah shrugged and followed her. Once she was at the top she saw that a large red cloth, almost like a curtain, blocked the doorway. Saria walked through without a glance behind her. **

**Sarah entered quietly, looking around. It was small but cozy, with a bed under a window and a table in the middle, random decorations here and there. On the bed was a blonde boy who looked a little older than Sarah herself. He had golden hair, deep blue eyes that out did Saria's, easily. He had on a green tunic, worn by age, a leather belt around it, some white undergarments of unknown material, Leather gauntlets, and brown boots, also worn by age. Strapped to his back were a sword and a shield, and he had a cap on his head. He looked at Sarah a while after she came in. In a smooth, yet somewhat deep voice, he asked, "So you're Sarah?" She nodded at his question. "Are you Link?" He grinned a coy, knowing grin at her "Oh, I'm that famous, am I?" She just stared at him blankly. "Um, Saria just mentioned you." Link seemed to deflate from that. She almost giggled at the sight of him.**

"**Yeah, I did." Saria chuckled as his ego shattered. "Well, I'll leave you two to get to know each other better, The Deku Tree isn't done with me." She walked out with that and left the two teenagers alone. Sarah looked at him. "Is she always like that?" Link chuckled to himself. "Not usually. So, how old are you?" "16. And you?" They got into a more relaxed position on the bed. "17. So, what's your favorite color…?" This went on for a while until it got dark. Sarah slept on the bed, while Link insisted to sleep in a chair. Morning came all too soon and Sarah woke to the sounds of movement in front of her. She cracked open an eye and observed Link cook breakfast. The smell of cooked meat and scrambled eggs permeated the air as the young man skillfully flipped the contents of a stone skillet over the fire of his, also stone, stovetop in the small kitchen. _How did he get that stove into a tree house, that's suspended over the earth? _She groaned as she sat up, stretching. Link called to her, "Awake yet?" "Not really…" He smirked. Sarcasm. His forte.**


	2. Balls and Ominous Light

A/N: Well, here's my second, or first, chapter. I tried a little more on the humor side, since I'm kinda cynical, it may not be that great. Thank you Link Fangirl01 and INUYASHA THE HALF DEMON1 for the reviews! I hope you enjoy this chapter. Now, on with the story, after a short message from Lance, the protagonist of this story!

Lance: Greetings! Neither David nor I claim any ownership of any and all Zelda-ishness portrayed in this story!

Chapter 1: Prologue to a hero 

**Once he opened his eyes, he realized it had all been a dream. _A very realistic one…_ He had dreamt of glory, power, and adventure. He had slept over villains. He had slumbered with thoughts of princesses. And he had snored about heroes.**

**No that he was aware that he was awake, he realized it was The day. The day he was going to touch his father's blade…**

**Despite being only 10, He was already quite tall, and never let on about his actual age. His blue eyes always had a condescending innocence in them, and only complemented his strawberry blonde hair.**

**Pulling on some chain mail, he looked for some pants, which he found. He then aspired to tug on the tough leggings, some that wouldn't wear out easily. For little more reason than his social status, Lance also strapped on a breastplate, a silver one with gold lining. Although he generally disliked the color gold, he all but _loved_ that breastplate. Strapping on multiple weapons around his body, out of plain view, he spiked his hair a bit and smiled. "This is gonna be a good day. I can feel it!" Boy, was he wrong.**

**+-------+**

"…**And that is why you don't ask a stranger if he has any balls you can play with, sweetie." His mother had caught up to him after she had finished buying some paintings in the High Crafts Shoppe. He had run off and, being the ten year old he was, asked the first person he saw for the soccer ball he was holding, Lance wanted to join. It probably would have worked out if it weren't for the _way_ he asked. "Hey, can I play with your ball, too?"**

"**Guhhh…" After enduring his mother's lecture on pedophiliac gays, he was sure he would be traumatized for quite a while. He loved her and all, but she was very… brash sometimes. **

**They were currently in a carriage, riding back to the castle, back home. He decided he was going to extract the blade in an hour, when his father and mother went to the great forest to visit a friend of theirs.**

**Soon enough, they arrived, his mother tucked a strand of ebony hair behind her ear and smiled up at the colossal building. When they got out of the carriage, his father, a tall, blonde man, with warm blue eyes, hugged us both enthusiastically. "How'd the shopping go? It must have been extremely exciting." He winked at me. He hadn't gone because of the preparations to visit this friend had taken his full attention. "Y-yes, s-sir…" Lance dazedly stepped into the castle. The man watched him go, smiling. "Another life lesson, Sarah?" She grinned. "Well, he wasn't paying attention at the shop."**

**+------+**

**Lance was waving his parents away. He watched the horse driven carriage until it disappeared over the horizon. He weaved his way deep into the castle now. The sword his father always mentioned in his good night stories was kept in the palace with its master. Lance had seen it only twice himself, and he had been awestruck by it ever since. He remembered the first time he heard about it…**

**+Flashback+**

"And with a final stab of the master sword, Ganon was sealed." Link had concluded his personal favorite of his many stories. "Master sword?" A very young Lance inquired.

"It's the sword I pulled from the pedestal of time and lost seven years of my life. I eventually got them back, though. I'll show you tomorrow." He did.

End flashback+

He was staring at the shining blade of the magnificent sword. "The master Sword…" he murmured. He slowly walked up to it, resting his hands on the pommel of the hilt. He just surveyed the moment for a bit, then gave an almighty tug. He could have sworn he had heard a click when it slid out. He panicked as a blue beam of light engulfed him. He found he couldn't move, either. "Crap…" He felt himself rise, gravity no longer tugging at him, no longer holding him to the earth. His vision swam in and out of focus, until they comprehended deep darkness, almost pitch black. He then lost consciousness.

A/N: So? Can you guess who his father is? A hint, the first letter in his name is the same as his son's.

Lance: More on that later. If you want more, review. SO REVIEW!! …pwease? ;-;


	3. The heck?

A/N: Because of the bold messing with some readers' eyes, I have decided to skip making it bold!

Lance: Huzza…

David: Hush, you. Anyway, I'm sorry for the delay, but hey, poppin' them out every day is just plain out inordinate. Okay, Lance, do the honors.

Lance: Honors…? Anyway, Neither of us own any zeldaness contained within the walls of the Idiots' brain.

Hey!

Chapter 2: The heck?

After waking up, Lance was met by familiar rich blue eyes. Upon further inspection, he found they belonged to a girl his age with a green turtle neck shirt on, some forest green shorts, and soft green boots. A deep green Hair clip adorned her almost violently vibrant green hair.

Lances' eyes bugged out. He knew her. "Aren't you Saria?!" She nodded. Looking around, he noticed he was in a forest. "W-where am I?" She looked at him strangely. "Your in Lost Woods. So who are you? And what are you wearing?" She helped him up at the last question. "I'm Lance Delgado. And this," he pointed at his chest, where the armor was glinting visibly, "is armor. Didn't you know that?" She shook her head.

She had been leading him forward to a not so unknown destination: Kokiri town. Link, his father, had taken Lance here twice. He had played with Saria before. He was six the last time he had seen her, but she didn't look any different now. He decided he should ask her about this later, as he had spotted his fathers old tree house. "Hey, let's go in the tree house!" Lance exclaimed, before Saria could even say anything against the youth, he had bolted towards it. He climbed up the roped and scrambled onto the balcony. He took a deep breath and walked in.

He wasn't prepared for the darkness that met him inside. Nor had he counted on the sleeping form on the bed. This intruder was apparently asleep, and not faring well in his dreams. He was covered in cold sweat, shivering despite the warmth. Lance looked closely at this figure.

After some scrutinizing, he declared this person a male. Something about the boy's face made him think though; it reminded him of someone. His jaw dropped. He recognized him, and quietly mouthed the word "Dad".

Saria came in just as Lance finished his statement. "Do you know Link?" She asked quietly, seeing the blonde still sleeping. Lance absentmindedly nodded. _Why…? He doesn't look any older than me… am I even awake?_

Rising out of his stupor, he noticed a blue fairy slowly fluttering in. "Hello! Which of you is Link?" Lance and Saria pointed at the snoring kokiri. The fairy sighed. "Of course, the lazy one, right?" She flew to his ear, hovered, and inhaled till Lance thought she'd bust. "HEY, WAKE UP, LAZY!!! LINK!!"

Link jumped up at least two feet in the air, falling out the window over his bed. "AHHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…. Oomph!" Saria winced, then laughed. Lance joined in and the fairy sweatdropped. "Oops." Link crawled in under his curtain/door and mumbled good mornin'. He sat on his bed and looked at his company. He then remembered the reason of his misfortunate awakening. He looked up at the fairy. "Who are you?"

She flew a little closer to him. "I'm Navi! The Great Deku Tree assigned me to you! He summoned you, by the way." Link then looked at Lance. "And you?" Lance was smart enough to realize this was probably before he was even born, this weird "dream", so he just settled for saying, "My name's Lance. It'd tell you the rest, but I don't feel like explaining. Anyway, you might as well go on this errand, first." Navi looked up. "Wait, The deku tree mentioned something about a red-headed boy in armor!" Lance blinked. "He did?"

"Yup."

"Well, what did he say?"

"…"

"…Navi, do you suffer from short term memory loss?"

"…"

"Oh, Din help us." Link looked confused, but stood up anyway. "Well, let's go! Saria, please wait for us in your house, 'k?" Saria nodded and left. "Let's go, then Lance." Link went out of house through the curtains. Lance looked out of the window. He looked down and smirked.

"Hey." Lance smiled good-naturedly at Link, who was gawking at the red head. "How did you get here before me?" Lance blinked. "Window." Link groaned and moved forward, towards the hollowed out tree trunk. A short, bow-legged kokiri was in front of the trunk and looked up when he heard us. His eyes widened when he saw me, though.

"Halt, Mr. No-Fairy, where do you think you're going?" He had an annoying, snobby voice that just wanted to make punch him. "Move aside, Mido. The Great Deku Tree summoned me and Lance."

Mido frowned. "Why would he summon some like you instead of me, the great Mido?! Well, Link, I won't let you pass! Not you, or your sniveling little friend there, either-" Mido was caught off in the mid-sentence by a fist from Lance. His metal clad hand managed to lacerate Mido's cheek and send him to the ground.

"Shut up, before your voice makes me hit you again. Now get the of the way," Lance's eyes narrowed, "or pay." He reached for the hilt of a sword on his back that was covered with his dark traveling cloak. His hands reached around the pommel. He again thought of his fathers' sword. _What happened to it…?_

Mido was crawling away, holding his face and sending curse Link's way. Lance step forward threateningly and Mido ran for it. Link was speechless. "You- He- Blood- Lance- wha?" Lance smirked. "You-err, I was taught to fight before. Guess it pays off, in the end."

Link nodded and distractedly walked forward, only to be sent flying backwards by something shooting out of the ground. Link crumpled into a heap by Lances feet. "…The heck?" In front of him stood possibly the ugliest thing he had ever seen. He thought back to his mother's last attempt at cooking._ Well… second ugliest. _A long, green stalk was most of the creature, with a blue, vein-riddled bulb with serrated teeth on the top end. He simply walked up to it and cut it's bulb off. He kicked Link awake. "No… I don't want to go to school… I want to stay home and bake cookies with yooooouu…" "Oookay…" Lance, freaked out by his... Fathers behavior, took a step back. Link stood up and wiped off his tunic. "Anyway, let's continue!"

After slicing up a few more of the plants, the trio walked into a clearing with a huge tree in the center: The Great Deku Tree. Navi fluttered off to the front of the tree.

"Great Deku Tree! I've returned with Link!" "And Lance." "And Lance!" The tree's moustache shook a little. "Ah, Navi, ye hast returned with the youths. Link, Lance, I have a deed of great importance to ask of thee, one that will require the utmost courage and bravery. Willst thou except?"


	4. You're a Girl?

A/N: Well, well, well. Hi, readers, welcome to another installment of 'Of Phoenix or Wolf', David Robinson-

Lance: -and Lance Delgado-

Dave: -here! Sorry for the delay, but hey, I've got my own crap to worry about. Well, here goes the first dungeon. And my second ever battle scene.

Lance: I'm really looking forward to it. =B

David: …I'm sure you are. I shall be almost introducing… Someone! Dumm Dumm Dunnnnnn!!! Anywho, on with the story!

Lance: None of this crap, other than the obvious, belongs to either David or me.

**Chapter 3: You're a girl?! And Navi is too?!**

"We will." Link was the first to speak after the silence from the wooden deity's request. "Err…" Lance was a little more reluctant. This reluctance increased ten-fold as an orifice opened up on the bark of The Tree. Link dragged Lance with him inside.

"…Whoa."

The inside of the tree was haggardly hollowed out, with marks that, should one look close enough, would remind one of bite marks.

Link dropped his comrade when he saw the tree's insides. "Yeah… This isn't normal for a tree, is it, Navi?" Lance turned to the fairy. "No, It isn't," she answered. She flew to her charge. "Link, let's go!" And on they went, steadily climbing the unnaturally hollow insides of the tree.

Until, they met their first roadblock. "We can't climb that." Lance stated. "Why not? It'll hold our weight." Link countered. Navi flew closer towards the vines. "No, wait. He's right, Link. There are Skulltullas on the vines, they'll attack, and possibly kill you if you try to climb."

Link looked at his fairy, "Then what are we supposed to do?" Lance looked around, "let's continue up the path." They did, and struck up an… interesting conversation.

"So, Lance, why are you in Kokiri Forest? You're too big to be a kokiri." Link suddenly asked.

"Well, I, um… See this girl sent me-" "Girl?" Link frowned. Navi just let the boys talk, she was looking at the extent of the damage inside the Great Deku Tree. "Yes, a… um a …a princess! She told me to find a boy in green with a shinning…" Lance's eyes alighted on a pebble in his path. "…Stone! Yeah! She told me to find you and bring you to her!" Lance exuberantly finished his rather… accurate story/guess. "Oh. Is she hot?"

Lance almost choked on his spit.

"What- Link, how old are you?!" Lance shouted to his companion. Link frowned again. "Ten." "You shouldn't be thinking about stuff like that yet!" Link took on a thoughtful look. "…" Lance looked back with a worried expression. "Link…?" Link looked up with a determined expression. "So, answer the question."

Navi had had enough by now and alerted the two of the door in front of them. "I feel a dark presence behind this door…" she told them. Link shrugged and opened the door… and was hit in the face with a wet, hard deku nut. Lance's eyes widen, and, despite himself gave a short bark of laughter, until a nut hit him in the gut. Poetic justice? Maybe.

Either way, he shut up after that. Navi flitted over to their assailant, a woody little thing with a cluster of leaves on top of what they assumed to be its head. "It's a Deku Scrub! If you get to close, it will hide in its burrow! Try to hit it from afar!" Link thought of a solution first. He quickly pulled of his shield and stared hard at it. While he was busy staring at the sliver of wood, the Scrub fired another snot-covered nut at him. Idiotically enough, it hit the shield, bounced back, and hit the plant right between the eyes.

Lance tackled the immobile Scrub. It then surprised everyone in the room when it yelped and spoke. "Masters, I beg of you to not hurt me! If I give you some helpful advice, would you let me go?" Lance looked back to Link, who nodded, and for once, despite his nature, looked serious. "I suppose…" The scrub trembled.

Link carried it out of the room back into the main cavern. "Down through that webbed hole, resides our queen. The only way to get down there is to either burn the web or-" Link tossed the little scrub off the edge and onto the web, which broke on impact.

Needless to say, the little thing screamed bloody murder. Link grinned lopsidedly, at which Lance recoiled._ Oh, no. He always grinned like that when he got a stupid idea…_ Link took hold of Lance's arm, and jumped off of the edge, plummeting them to a certain doom.

_______________________________________________________________________===============================================================

Meanwhile, King Link and his wife, Queen Sarah, had arrived back home, only to find the young prince missing. While his wife grew frantic, Link visited the pedestal of time like he always did to calm down.

When he got to the shrine, he noticed another person. They had long blondish red hair that was slightly spiked, but still hung in his face, covering the left side of it. They were wearing a long black cloak over gold and red armour, and a sword handle was sticking out from under the cloak on his right shoulder.

"Link, the sword is gone." Link sighed. "It's that time, then?" The person turned around, revealing themselves to be a handsome young man, around the age of the king standing beside him, with cold blue eyes. "Yes, I've just started my journey with you, Link."

_______________________________________________________________________

After landing in a pool of what the trio hoped was water, they set off into an ominous black tunnel ahead of them. While traversing the cave, Lance noticed the walls looked chewed out, as if some giant mole carved its way through with its teeth. "Navi, have you noticed the walls?" The fairy turned to inspect them, only to turn and stare into a red eye as big as her. "Wahh!" She pivoted and flew into Lance's breastplate. Lance's scandalized look almost made Link laugh.

First, though, Link took care of the little monster with the glowing eye. Navi shakily flew out of the armour and fluttered toward the carcass of the monster. "I-it resembles a gohma spider's young, but way bigger. Bigger then even a grown gohma!" Link looked down at the dead monster and noticed a piece of wood sticking out. He grabbed it and pull out a… slingshot. "What is this doing in a monster spider thing? Oh, well. Mine!"

After this little interlude, the two boys continued further. Link looked closely at Navi and suddenly widened his eyes. "Hey, Navi, you're a girl!" Lance rolled his eyes. "Well, that was just such an enlightening observation, Link."

Link shook his head, discarding the sarcasm. "I mean! She's a pretty girl!" Lance leaned in closer towards the now pink fairy and squinted to see past the light. What he saw was the figure of a rather cute girl with silvery blue hair and sparkling sapphires for eyes. She was wearing a simple white gown that flowed with every beat of her wings.

Lance blinked, while Navi grew a darker shade of red. "Your right! For once you actually said something I'm willing to agree to!" Navi, now a red that could put a tomato to shame, quickly said, "Uh, do you hear that, too?" They stopped and listened hard.

Eventually, Lance heard something. "Is that chewing?" The group continued on, and eventually came to an open chamber that had a somewhat dim pulsing light source of a light greenish blue. As they stopped, Link looked up and locked eyes with a single, huge green eye. He immediately froze and the chewing noises ceased. Link tried to tell Lance to look up, though rather unsuccessfully. Eventually, Link found his voice and screamed, "UP! Look up!" Lance and Navi did, at which point the owner of the eye decided to come down and welcome its guests.

The ensuing crash knocked Lance, who was closer, off his feet and Link back. Navi flopped backwards and landed on Links head. The beast that was now standing before them roared a battle cry. It looked almost crustacean, half spider scorpion, half crab lobster, with heavy plating, large claws, clicking mandibles, and glowing crystals on it's shoulders.

Navi flapped back into the air, and gave her report. "It looks like a gohma spider brood mother, but with more armour and extremely larger than should be possible!" Link nodded and Lance looked back at the monster. "And how do we fight it?!" Navi hovered around a bit, then answered. "I would say hit the eye or those crystals!"

So they set of to work, Lance distracting it and Link shooting it in the eye with pebbles he found lying around, conviently enough. One pebble hit the creatures left crystal, and it went berserk, managing to knock Lance into the wall. Link ran over to him. "Don't worry, I'm alright, just try to shoot the eye…" Link did, Gohma lay stunned on the floor.

Both then hacked and slashed at the beast. Eventually, it noticed that its current strategy wasn't working and it crawled up a wall to the ceiling. It's eye burned red, glaring at it's enemies. It was then, that Link shot it. It came crashing down and the duo finished the monster off, slashing or kicking, whichever seemed more convenient.

It suddenly caught blue fire and the boys were forced to jump back and cover their eyes. When they could see again, both noticed a person lying where the monster was. Navi hovered toward the person. "So there was another curse here, on this person!"

Link and Lance walked over. The latter kneeled next to this mystery person and gasped. "It's a girl!" Indeed, it was a girl, looking to be, coincidently, their age, with long ashy brown hair, a fair complexion, and a short green dress with a brown bolero over her shoulders. The three conscious people looked at each other. "Dude, that monster was a girl!"

_______________________________________________________________________

**A/N: **_Well, that was… interesting._

Lance: Why do I speak so… civilized? I'm like ten in this story!

_David: You're also a prince, bunghole._

Lance: ._. Oh.

_David: Well I hope you enjoyed this horribly delayed chapter! Please leave a review!_


	5. Skirts have Pockets?

A/n: Well, hello.

Lance:...

Dave: …?

Lance: The hell...?

Dave: Wha~?

Lance: You've been gone for like a year, update five chapters at once, and all you have to say for yourself is "Well, hello"?!

Dave: ...You done now?

Lance:*glares* Answer the _damn_ question, teme.

Dave: Uh... yes?

Lance: ..._**Fuck... You.**_

Dave: Err.. While he's cooling off, I would like to remind you that neither Lance nor I own any Zelda characters, plot, or franchise. Aside from copies of many of this particular series's games.

Of Wolf and Phoenix

Chapter 5

Link, Lance, Navi, and the mysterious girl were all outside of the Deku Tree. She had yet to wake up, but that didn't stop the boys from studying her.

Link was the first to break the silence. "She's actually really pretty." Lance nodded, and noticed a pendant hanging from a choker. It had a large gem on it, resembling a rupee, yet it was equilateral. One of the facets was light green, while all the others were some color resembling onyx. A voice sounded from behind them, "Thou hast returned. Who is that with ye?" Link turned around, alarmed. He relaxed soon, though. The Deku Tree was looking down at the group. Link answered, "We don't really know... She appeared after we beat the spider-thing-" Navi chimed in, "Gohma!" "-Gohma, but she was unconscious." The tree seemed to adopt a studious aura, as if peering into the girls' very soul- "I know not who she is." ...Or not.

Link was the first to ask another question. "Well, since we lifted that "curse", you'll be alright, right?" At the tree's silence, a sense of unease swept the two boys and fairy. "Right?!" Link was starting to panic, and from the frequent breathing sounds coming from Navi, Lance assumed she was panicking, too. "Great Deku Tree, you're dying, aren't you?" Link shot his gaze at the red head, who in turn pointed at the reddish brown leaves in the high canopy. "His leaves are falling off."

Link followed Lance's arm towards the canopy of the Deku tree, seeing that Lance had spoken the truth. Link and Navi stared at the darkening leaves as if transfixed, unable to believe their eyes. The one to break this silence was the great tree himself. "Thou hath assumed correctly. My time in this world is nigh, so allow me to tell you of the despicable man from the desert, that hath placed this curse upon me..."

His voice was just barely cracking, but the weakness was still perceptible. The faerie and her partner reluctantly tore their gazes from above, to settle on the slightly darker bark of their 'father'. Lance was in his own little world at this point. He remembered this particular story from his father, and he could just barely recall some man's name... Ganon..dork? Eh, sounded close enough.

During the redhead's little inner monologue, the dying tree had explained about this desert man that had cursed him, and he recited the legend of the three goddesses, just for good measure. Link was paying rapt attention, as was Navi, though she was still sniffling quietly, tiny droplets of liquid falling from her illuminated form.

By the time the old tree was finished, Lance had snapped out of his little trance and was again surveying the tree with icy eyes. His bark was considerably more ashy, and many more leaves were resting on the floor around the group. The tree seemed to shudder, before addressing the three in front of him. "I want you three to go outside the forest, and search for the Princess of Destiny." Link immediately brought up what he and Navi thought were very important points. "But I'm a Kokiri! I can't leave the woods, or... Something!" Navi chimed her two cents. "Yeah!" Okay, maybe one...

The tree thought a bit, trying to find a way to explain, before he remembered something. "Link, the children of the forest are only kept inside it, so that I can continue to watcheth over them. If a Kokiri were to leave, they would most undoubtedly die," Link paled, and opened his mouth to say something, before the tree beat him to the punch. "However, only after they had grown old and withered. Staying in this forest keeps them young, if they were to leave, they wouldst be little more than nature attuned hylians, for all intents and purposes." Link got some color back in his face, and in a much more composed sounding voice, asked his next question. "So... If I left, I'd grow up?" Lance shook his head, deciding to answer for the Deku tree. "Well, yeah, but it'd take years. Hylians live to be around one hundred years old, give or take a few years."

Link nodded in understanding, and Lance turned back to the tree. "So, what do we do with her?" He aimed his thumb over his shoulder, where the girl they had recently found was still sleeping soundly. The tree grew quit for a moment, before answering. "Take her with thee, I suppose. She caries a strange aura, and she may aid thee, whilest you search for the princess." Lance again stared at the tree. "So, about this princess... Where would we find her?"

The tree paused before voicing his answer. "Thou shall find her in a castle to the north, through Hyrule field, the vast grassland that lies outside these woods. If that is all thou wish to ask me, you may leave, but first, take this, the gem that Man wanted so badly that he would curse me for it. The Spiritual stone of the Forest." A small, shining green stone floated down from above toward the group, where it hovered for a bit, before falling the last ten or so feet, and being conveniently caught by Link's skull. "Ack-!" Link chose this moment to pass out. Lance bent down and picked up the green and shining stone, admiring the gold leafing design around the emerald. "The Kokiri's Emerald?" Navi floated closer to Lance inspecting the stone before bobbing up and down. "Yup! That's the Kokiri's Emerald! Though.. I wonder how you knew about it...?" Lance thought of an excuse quickly. "Eh, I heard of it in my travels. As did this desert guy, apparently."

Navi bobbed again, approving Lances response. Link groaned, returning to the land of the conscious, a small curse leaving his lips in an undertone. "Ugh, is that what hit me?" Link picked the emerald from Lance's grasp and studied it, before shrugging, and stuffing it in his... Skirt. "What the hell are you doing? You sick-!" Lance was, understandably disturbed about what he just witnessed. Link shrugged again, cutting the redhead off. "It's an Endless Pocket. All Kokiri have one." Lance just 'deleted' the whole last twenty seconds from his mind, before he bent down and picked up the still snoozing girl. "Well, we're off, Deku tree!" Lance marched off, leaving Link and Navi. Link walked up to the tree and tried to hug it, basically smacking himself face first into the smooth bark of the tree. "Good bye, Great Deku Tree..." Link backed off, before running down the path, Navi only hesitating a moment, before following her charge. The tree chuckled, before glowing a bit. "Children. What lovely creatures they can be. I must ensure the safety... Of this forest..." With that, the glowing mist around the tree gathered up on his bark, before exploding outward in a pulse, a small golden seed falling into the earth in front of the old tree. Said tree seemed to smile, before falling into silence. Though non-responsive, he was still warm to the touch.

A/n: Well, short chapter, but inspiration rarely strikes for longer than a brief moment for me. And not at all for my partner...

Lance: ...*snore*

Dave: ...Ugh. Whatever. So, I changed a few things up. The Deku Tree is still alive, at least, for the moment. I wonder how this will affect the story?

Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I wouldn't mind if you dropped off a review. Seeya!


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